Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Get Gamm - Week OneIt's time. Football season is upon us. That can only mean one thing to the regular followers of this blog, and formerly, the web site. Time to Get Gamm. Each week we pick the games, with commentary. Simply beat me and everyone else for the week and you get to join me in next week's Get Gamm blog. Make your picks via the comments board and watch the standings in the right nav. Good luck. BuckeyeNation won for BOTH football and basketball last year and wears the giant bulls eye...

Schedule:FIU at Penn StateYoungstown State at Ohio StateNortheastern at NorthwesternUAB at Michigan StateAppalachian State at MichiganMissouri vs. Illinois (St. Louis)Washington State at Wisconsin (Tiebreaker)Iowa vs. Northern Illinois (Chicago)Purdue at ToledoBowling Green at MinnesotaIndiana State at Indiana

Florida International at Penn StateThe Golden Panthers have absolutely no shot at laying an upset on Penn State. The Nittany Lions are a recent favorite to win the Big Ten title and will use this as a glorified scrimmage. FIU is routinely listed on ESPN.com's Bottom Ten list and that means one thing. That damn lion in the scoreboard will be roaring aplenty this Saturday. Penn State 48 - FIU 7.

Youngstown State at Ohio StateAbout the only thing that makes this game noteworthy is the fact that Jim Tressel's re-tooled Buckeyes take on his old program. The Penguins may be fired up and stay close - until the Buckeyes take the field. Reloading, rebuilding, retooling... however you shake it, this game will be a nice chance for the scarlet and gray to lock down personnel battles. Ohio State 37 - YSU 9.

Northeastern at NorthwesternThis is the king of directional school name match-ups! The Wildcats got picked off by Northeastern's CAA rival New Hampshire last year but that was then and under very different circumstances. There isn't much to say here except if the purple and black want to get back to winning ways, they can't lay a 1-AA egg again to start the season. They won't. Northwestern 28 - Northeastern 10.

UAB at Michigan StateThe Blazers come into this game fresh off a 3-9 campaign. Michigan State sprints through the tunnel with a new coach, staff and - supposedly - a new attitude. The Spartans know they need to make hay early as the Big Ten slate is brutal for them. UAB will run two quarterbacks at the green and white, and things will be uncomfortable for a while, but State fans will see glimpses of the smash-mouth brand they've longed for since Saban left. Michigan State 31 - UAB 10.

Appalachian State at MichiganDon't laugh, this could be a game - for a quarter or so. App. State is the two-time defending 1-AA champion and will come to Ann Arbor eager to prove that they can stay with the big boys. Whether they can (and if so, how long) remains to be seen. Michigan will have one of the most explosive offenses in the land this season. The defense needs to come along and will get a chance to work out the bugs as this game wears on. Michigan 38 - Appalachian State 14.

Missouri vs. Illinois (St. Louis)This is one of only two good games on tap for the Big Ten in week one. The rivals will do battle in St. Louis with Missouri ranked and poised to contend for a Big 12 North title, while Illinois is just hoping to finally put more than two or three wins on the board again. The hype is about the great youth at Illinois, but I will take the veterans of Missouri in this one, perhaps the only loss on the day for the Big Ten. Missouri 27 - Illinois 17.

Washington State at WisconsinWazzou has been mediocre the past few seasons, but on the upward tick. Wisconsin quietly whipped butts all over the Big Ten last fall and set a school record for victories in a single season. A boatload of starters return for the Badgers on a team primed to smell the roses come January. WSU is getting better, but they crowd in Madison is worth 7 to 10 points - easy. Wisconsin 34 - Washingston State 13.

Northern Illinois vs. Iowa (Chicago)The first of three Big Ten v. MAC tilts on the slate this week, with many more to follow. NIU has been a pretty good team out of the MAC the last few years, but Iowa is hungry to get back to big time winning. The Huskies gave Iowa a run in Iowa City last fall, but Garrett Wolfe has departed and catch Iowa on the rise this go around. Like many Big Ten - MAC battles of late, this could be hotly contested for a half or so, but in the end, Iowa gets the W. Iowa 31 - Northern Illinois 13.

Purdue at ToledoA rare opener away from home, and in a MAC venue too boot. Purdue has the offensive weapons to have a great season. Toledo is in turmoil with major off the field issues but has been a pretty good team over the past several seasons. The Rockets beat Penn State and Minnesota in season openers earlier in the decade and are no stranger to shocking wins. In fact, ten years ago, Toledo beat Purdue in the opener. Okay, enough of the grand illusions. Purdue makes the Big Ten 2-0 against the MAC and with ease. Purdue 44 - Toledo 10.

Bowling Green at MinnesotaThis one could be interesting. Minnesota will look a lot different with a new coach, new QB and light four key players. BSGU is never afraid to take on the Big Ten and does so this season on back-to-back weeks to kick off the season. The Falcons had a down year last year and have some questions, but will compete with the Gophers. Minnesota will win on the legs of Amir Pinnix. Minnesota 27 - Bowling Green 21.

Indiana State at IndianaFeels like we should be talking basketball with this one, but alas, we're a few months away from that. The big question here is no secret - how will the Hoosiers, who have slowly improved the past few seasons, respond to the loss of Terry Hoeppner? Will they play inspired or flat? This team has a bowl berth in reach, but it MUST take care of these highly winnable games early. Indiana 34 - Indiana State 14.

TheFinalScore

The Final Score blog is my personal podium for Big Ten football and basketball. From previews to predictions, insights & opinions on games, teams, players and coaches, TheFinalScore is your source for Big Ten sports.